Learning To Live
by Hope Swings
Summary: She was a Physical Therapist caught up in her father's mistakes. He was the paraplegic son of a celebrity, hidden away from society. Strange events threw them together. But only Fate knows if they'll pull through. A Modern Day Beauty & The Beast.
1. Prolouge

**Disclaimer: **_I take no claim in the ownership of these characters or the products of _Inuyasha_, the series or merchandise or anything pertaining to Ms. Takahashi's property._

**Learning To Live**

**Prologue – Walking Away**

"I can't believe that jerk!" an angry growl came from the depths of the upturned bedroom.

Clothes covered every surface and drawers were flung open. An open suitcase was propped up on the unmade bed with pant legs and sleeves and socks hanging over the edge. Surrounded by what seemed to be the aftermath of a clothing bomb was a young raven-haired woman pitching skirts, blouses, and jeans into the open suitcase.

Her hair was a mess and her face was contorted into a furious snarl. Pausing for breath in the middle of her angry tirade, she pushed her bangs off of her sweaty face and looked about, sucking air in through her pursed lips. Seeing the product of her reign of destruction, she groaned and flopped onto the clothing and book strewn bed.

"Oh, God…" she muttered into her hands with a sigh. "What have I gotten myself into? Why the hell am I here?"

Propping herself up with an elbow, she glanced at the slender, black leather-banded watch on her wrist. 5:37… If she could finish packing in half an hour and could make it to the bus station by 6:05, she could catch the 6:15 bus back to San Francisco…

Standing up and brushing herself off, plan freshly formed, and with renewed determination, the twenty-five-year-old dumped out the half packed suitcase and started over much more calmly. She didn't have to stay here just to clean up her father's mistakes. He could deal with the repercussions after she'd gotten back home. After all, taking care of that spoiled brat, Inuyasha Taisho, was not her problem.

X

Later that night, leaning against the window of a Grey Hound bus, the young woman reflected on the events leading up to her stay at Taisho Manor and her hasty decision to return home.

'It's not that I didn't enjoy getting away from busy city life,' she thought sullenly.' And most of the staff were very kind and welcoming – especially Sango and Miroku. But…'

With a sigh, she turned away from the window and closed her eyes, massaged her temples gently. It'd been a tough and hectic couple of weeks and she'd been getting headaches frequently. Taking a few sips of water, she settled down for a long ride home. Now she'd finally be able to process how and why she'd been roped into this whole situation…

X

"_Okay, Mr. Staten, we're all done her! You're free to go."_

"_Oh, thank you, Miss Higurashi! I've been feeling so much better these past couple of months!"_

_The raven-haired specialist beamed at the sixty-year-old man._

"_Oh, it was my pleasure, Mr. S! I've really enjoyed our sessions, too! Plus, it_ is_ my job."_

_The two laughed companionably as she helped him walk down the hallway to the sunny front room of the recovery clinic. It was one of their last sessions together before he made as full of a recovery as she could help him with. Thinking about it, the twenty-five-year-old could honestly say she would miss the old man. He reminded her of her grandfather in many ways._

"_Well," she began when they came to their destination where his elderly wife and one of his grandchildren stood waiting. "I'll see you in a six weeks. Don't forget to do your exercises and lay off the McDonalds, except the ice cream cones. Those are good."_

_She winked down at him and waved him off with a smile. Yep, she really would miss him… Turning around, she nodded at the receptionist behind the front desk. But the young woman didn't return the greeting. Frowning, she made her way over to the nervously shifting woman._

"_Ayumi? What's the matter?"_

"_Um… Sorry, Kagome. Your father called while you were with Mr. S. I tried to tell him Wednesdays are your busiest days, but…" she trailed off, twiddling her thumbs and not looking her in the eye._

"_Okay… Did he leave me a message?"_

_Ayumi shook her head glumly. Kagome raised a suspicious eyebrow. Where was this going?_

"_He said it was urgent, so…" her soft voice drifted off into incoherent mumbles._

"_Sorry?"_

"_He's in your office."_

_Kagome froze. Did she just hear her right? Her father was in her office?_

"_How… How long has he been waiting?"_

"_About half an hour?"_

"_Oh…"_

"_I'm sorry, Kagome. I tried to tell him –," _

"_No, no. It's okay. Not your fault my father's as stubborn as I am."_

_She grinned wryly and waved at the woman as she headed off down the hall. Stopping in front of a door marked 'K. Higurashi', she hesitated and took a deep breath._

'_Well, might as well get this over with…' she thought as her hand came up to rest on the cold metal of the doorknob._

_Stepping into her cool, air-conditioned office, she immediately spotted the just-over middle-aged man with the slicked-back, graying black hair, crisp business suit, and wire-rimmed glasses. Bristling at his hard gaze, she strode over to her disorganized desk as calmly as she could. Once seated, they both stared each other down, neither willing to back down to the other._

_Finally, the elder Higurashi sighed and sat back, scrubbing his face with his hands. Kagome leaned back, bobbing a foot and gazing stonily at him, waiting for him to speak. Passing a hand over his thick black hair and another over his forest-green tie, Mr. Higurashi cleared his throat._

"_I know we've never been on very good terms –,"_

_Kagome snorted indignantly. In return, her father shot her an icy glare._

" – _but I need to ask you for a favor. I'm in a bit of a pickle."_

"_Oh," Kagome scoffed. "How long did it take you to admit_ that_?"_

"_Look, Kagome, I'm willing to let our differences aside. But you've got to be willing to as well."_

"_You make it sound as if I'm the one crawling to you for help!"_

"_Just listen for a minute!"_

"_Oh, yeah, Dad, let's say I agreed to set everything aside and listened to you. Like that's going to make a difference! Why should I help you? I haven't talked to you for years for a _reason_! You can't just expect me to help you out when you wanted nothing to do with Mom, Grandpa, Souta, or me since I was fourteen! Give me a good reason why it'd be a good idea!"_

"_I'm your_ father_!"_

"_Oh,_ now_ you're taking credit for it! Sorry, Dad, you're about eleven years too late!"_

"_Now see here –,"_

"_No! Sorry for being a bit immature,_ Dad_, but I refuse to help out the man who gave up on me and my family!"_

_The room fell silent, echoing faintly of Kagome's last words. Father and daughter were both standing, leering at each other over the overflowing desk. Their staring match seemed to go on forever, neither relenting to the other. This time; however, it was Kagome who stepped back and sighed, turning her back to him._

"_Please. Just leave," her quiet, strained voice was devoid of emotion and stress weary._

_Sighing, her father set a manila envelope on her desk. Turning to leave, he paused in the door and spoke to her rigid back._

"_I'm sorry, Kagome. Nut I really need your help. It's a matter of life and death to me and you're the only person I knew I could turn to and trust… If you change your mind, give me a call."_

_And with that, her father was gone, just like so many years before, a week after her fourteenth birthday. Kagome only moved to look around at he cluttered and cramped office long after her father had left. Moving to sit behind her desk, she hesitantly picked up the heavy envelope and unfolded the flap, setting the next few months' events into motion. _

**Whew! I'm done! Sorry to anyone who's been waiting for anything new from me! I'm in the middle of sorting through everything and figuring out the details of my new computer. Plus, these past few months have been really hectic for me. I just finished with school last week and I had to deal with choir concerts, auditions, call-backs, and the shock and relief of finding out I made it for next year, as well as Finals the last week of school and my brother's moving out in two weeks for college. I should be updating _Casing Off_ and _Headlines_ sometime this week and posting a new one sometime soon, too. I hope you enjoyed the first installment of _Learning To Live_! The 'first chapter' chapter should be up sometime soon, as well. Sorry again! – Hope Swings **


	2. Chapter 1

**Learning to Live**

**Chapter One – Daddy Dearest**

Kagome Hirgurashi had lived a pleasant childhood filled with smiles, hugs, and all the love a child could ask for. She lived with her parents, younger brother, and grandfather in an average house in the better part of San Francisco from the age of four until she left for college. They'd moved to the city after her brother was born and her father was transferred over from the east coast. Her parents had a great relationship and they lived a very good life in the suburbs. But a few years of living in the Bay City made her father restless and unsatisfied. No one in her family knew or suspected that he was involved in an affair with a younger woman until after Kagome's fourteenth birthday.

They had all been so happy and held a huge celebration to commemorate not only Kagome's birthday, but her graduation from middle school the month before as well. Friends and relatives came over and the party lasted until late into the night. Her father had taken up his stake at the barbeque for most of the evening, but had disappeared somewhere between cake and ice cream and their guests' departure. No one thought anything of it, until a few days later when there was a message from a strange woman on the answering machine.

Kagome had found it when she had come home early from swim team. Both her parents worked full-time jobs so they wouldn't be home until later in the afternoon. She'd just taken off her shoes and was flipping through the mail for anything important or interesting when she noticed the answering machine flashing. Thinking she would help her parents by listening to it to conveying the message, she pushed the button and listened as a woman named Tamora's voice drifted through the house.

"… _Hi, Ichigo! It's Tamora! I'm just calling to confirm our_," here she giggled before continuing in amusement, "meeting_. I can't wait to see you again Ichi! See you Thursday! Call me; I miss you_!"

There was more giggling before the line went dead and the automated voice informed Kagome that there were no more new messages and went on to replay a few old ones from earlier in the week that no one had bothered to erase. Kagome just stood there, staring quizzically at the answering machine. Who was Tamora? And why was she calling for her father? She sounded like a love-struck teenager… Shrugging it off, she decided to ask her father later about the strange woman. She _was_ calling for him and obviously knew him well enough to call him by just his first name and be so familiar, let alone have an arranged meeting with him. Maybe she was someone really nice and she and Kagome could be friends…

X

"Daddy? Who's Tamora?" Kagome asked later that night over dinner.

Her father glanced up at her startled for a moment before smiling softly at his daughter. "I don't know, Kagome. Is she a new friend of yours, or maybe some new celebrity?"

"No," Kagome shook her head. "She called earlier for you. She called you _Ichi_." Kagome wrinkled her nose at the nickname, picking at her food absently.

All movement at the table ceased as everything went silent. Noticing the sudden stillness and tension in the air, Kagome slowly raised her head to gaze blankly around at her family. They were all staring at her openly, seemingly frozen in the moment.

"What?" she asked, still oblivious to what she'd said.

Her voice seemed to break the spell and the room erupted in loud voices and silverware clattering against plates and the table. Her mother stood up from the table with an incredulous look on her face as she yelled down at her father. Grandpa started complaining about his eczema acting up over the last few weeks with the dry summer heat rolling in, which was strange for the city by the bay… Her father stood up as well to meet her mother's challenging voice with a booming voice of his own. And little Souta who was only six and didn't understand anything that was going on, frightened by all the yelling, started to cry, wailing and gasping as fat crocodile tears streamed down his face and his pudgy little nose ran like a leaky faucet. Kagome just sat there and watched all this going on stunned. Who knew just one lady could start something this loud and… heated.

"_Ichi_? Some woman I don't know is going around calling you _Ichi_?" Her mother shrieked.

"A lot of people call me _Ichi_!" her father roared back, mimicking her voice when her said the nickname.

"It's been quite dry lately," Grandpa lamented grievously. "I can't stop itching, no matter what I do to alleviate it and use creams and salves."

"When, when you were ten? Ichigo, _I_ don't even call you that!"

"Well, you never thought of it, I guess! And why do you care anyway? Are you _jealous_ Gina?"

"Before you know it, I'm going to scratch myself raw and bloody," Grandpa continued with a sigh while her mother gasped at her father's words.

"_Jealous_? Why would I be _jealous_? Unless…" again she gasped and pointed an accusing finger at him, her other hand covering her gaping mouth.

"Unless what, Gina?" her father snapped at her silence.

"Unless…" she said softly around her hand. "Unless you're seeing her…"

Her father didn't say anything to her statement. He just kept staring at her, unmoving. He couldn't deny it and he couldn't bring himself to confirm her words. Souta continued to wail loudly in the background. Her mother's hand began to shake and her eyes filled with tears as she shook her hear slowly.

"It's true, isn't it?" she said in a soft voice, not needing an answer to know she was right as her tears silently trekked down her cheeks.

Her father nodded, looking away. "Yes."

And with that, her mother broke down in sobs and collapsed on the floor. Grandpa had stopped complaining about his skin condition and Souta's tears were winding down finally. Kagome continued to watch, dumbstruck as her father sighed and walked out of the dining room. She could hear him in the hall talking on the phone to someone before retreating to the bedroom he'd shared with his wife for sixteen years.

Later that night, Kagome walked passed her parents' bedroom and heard them talking. The door was partially open and their soft voices were hushed so that no one else would hear their conversation. But Kagome couldn't help eavesdropping. She knew her family was falling apart and she wanted to know why.

"How long?" her mother asked in a rough voice, her throat rubbed raw from her sobs.

"About two years," her father replied solemnly.

"Oh, God!" she cried. "Were we really that horrible? Were you really so unsatisfied?"

"No, no, that's not it," her father said in a tired voice and Kagome could picture him massaging the bridge of his nose like he always did when her was stressed or frustrated.

"Then what is it, Ichigo? Do you not love me any more? Do you not love your children anymore? This is your family!"

"Gina…"

"I just don't understand, Ichigo! You always seemed so happy!"

"And I was!" he finally exploded, making Kagome jumped back from the door startled. Her father had never yelled like that… "Just, just let me explain, okay?"

There was silence on the other side of the door. Kagome guessed her mother was nodding. 'She must have been startled too,' Kagome thought as she moved closer to the door to better hear what her parents were saying.

"It's not your fault, or anyone's fault," her father finally said after a few minutes of silence. "I just… I don't know. It just happened and I didn't stop it."

"But _why_?"

"I didn't… want to. I knew I loved you and I knew I loved the kids. But with Tamora… I was a different person. I didn't have to worry about bills or being a father, she made me feel younger and more… reckless, invincible," his wistful voice took Kagome by surprise. So this strange woman made him… happier?

"But you're not, Ichigo? You can't stop being a father, and everyone has to worry about bills and taxes. And you're not getting any younger… None of us are…"

"She doesn't care about my age!"

"And neither do I! You're my husband and I promised to love you and be faithful to you no matter what. And you did too! You went back on our promise to each other! The promise we made before the law and God!"

"You don't understand, Gina!"

"I understand fully, Ichigo! I've loved you for most of my life, but that's just not good enough for you. And looking at it right now, I discover that I really don't care anymore. But the least you could have done was tell me instead of leading me on – leading our whole family on – for two whole _years_!"

The room was silent for an uncomfortable beat and Kagome backed away slightly, worried that they had discovered her snooping in the hall. But then her mother's soft but harsh voice cut through the silence.

"Get out. If you don't want anything to do with this family anymore then you can just leave and never see me or my children ever again."

Not wanting to get caught, Kagome quickly fled down the hall silently. She locked herself in her room and didn't dare answer her father's voice when he came to say good-bye a few minutes later. She could hear her brother's crying from the other side of the house again and assumed her father was really leaving for good. She hadn't heard his response to her mother's words, so she didn't know what had happened between them after she'd abruptly ended her eavesdropping. But she didn't really care. The man she had called father and loved for her whole life up until that point was walking out on them for another woman after two years of unfaithfulness. She had no love for him anymore; he was dead to her… Or at least that's what she told herself…

So for the next four years, Kagome and her family got by and lived a fairly normal life. After high school, she left for college and moved out. She had planned to be a neurologist. Her grandfather had passed away when she was seventeen of a serious brain tumor and her whole family was devastated because there was nothing they could have done; it grew too fast, even though they had caught it fairly early. They hadn't even been able to start treatments before he had died in his sleep of a massive seizure. So Kagome had dedicated her life to helping others in such conditions.

Unfortunately, around the time that Kagome was starting her last quarter of her sophomore year in college, her father showed up on their doorstep, begging for help. He had fallen upon some hard times and had nowhere to stay. Her mother, still very much in love with her ex-husband, took pity upon his poor situation and had allowed him to stay until he had his feet underneath him. Everything was going fine for a while, although Kagome was away at college and refused to interact with her father at all, so she couldn't judge the circumstances for herself.

But then, one morning, her mother and brother woke up to find that her father was gone and had taken all of the money in their bank accounts – including Souta's and Kagome's college funds – a sizeable portion of her mother's jewelry – many of which were family heirlooms – and the family's car. They were all devastated at the loss and ashamed at how easily he had deceived them and taken advantage of them. In order to make up for what they had lost, her mother began working several part-time jobs and the occasional odd job, but it wasn't enough to keep Kagome in college. So after the end of her second year in college, Kagome dropped out and started working full-time to help support her family and attended the local community college at night. Fortunately, she had enough credits and experience to find a good job as a physical therapist and managed to find a clinic that allowed her to continue her studies in the field of neurology and become the leading specialist in her area of work.

She was one of the best. She had the highest number of recovered patients in the whole of Northern California. Kagome had everything going for her. So then why was she laying awake in bed? Why couldn't she get to sleep? It couldn't be because she felt pity for her father. He'd given up on her. Why should she help him out? But then again…

"_I need to ask you for a favor. I'm in a bit of a pickle."_

Kagome stared up at her ceiling, trying desperately and failing to fall asleep. She just couldn't get the encounter she'd had with her father earlier that day out of her head.

"…_I really need your help. It's a matter of life and death to me and you're the only person I knew I could turn to and trust…"_

Kagome sighed and stood up from her rats' nest of a bed. She'd been tossing and turning for the past two and a half hours in an attempt to get comfortable and fall asleep. But none of her usual methods had worked and she wasn't quite ready to drug herself to sleep. Her mind was just so restless, and it was all her blasted father's fault!

Padding into the kitchen, she swiped the folder her father had dumped on her desk off of the hall table and flicked on the lights. She plopped down into a chair at the kitchen table and leaned on her elbows, massaging the bridge of her nose with a scowl. It was a habit that she had picked up from her bastard of a father. Figures he would cause her so much anxiety that she would be driven to a habit he instilled in her… Glancing down at the manila folder, she gave a heavy sigh and gingerly scooped it up, flipping it open with a sense of trepidation. She didn't really intend to help the old man out, but curiosity was getting the better of her at the moment…

The first page had her floored.

"What the hell…?" she breathed, flipping through the next few pages. How in the world had her father acquired such in-depth and thorough information? And on…

Kagome threw the folder down on the table as if she'd been burned. No wonder he was in a pickle. 'Pickle my ass. This is the deepest shit he could possibly manage to get into. Figures it would be my old man to dig himself this deep and then come running to me…' Sighing, she let her head drop into her hands. Whether she agreed or not, someone was going to come looking for her since she was affiliated with her father, although distantly and intentionally so.

"God, Dad, what did you drag me into? I mean, _the_ Taisho's? Come on! I don't need this – now or ever!"

With a very audible groan, Kagome stood up and made her way over to the phone and dialed her father's number. At least at this time, she could bug the hell out of him by waking him up with her 'good' news. 'Stupid fathers,' she mentally grumbled. 'Dragging their innocent daughters into their stupid shit just to save their fat asses…'

X

Somewhere in a forest near Honey Lake in Northern California, a silver-haired young man was thinking along the same lines… Except for the fact that instead of daughters, he was thinking about sons… Deftly rolling the wheels of his state-of-the-art wheelchair forward, he scowled at the ramp disappearing beneath his propped up and unfeeling legs.

His father had just returned from a long business trip and had informed him that in a few days – at most, a week – a new physical therapist and neuro-specialist would be arriving to take a fresh look at his case and work with him over the next few months. Why did his father always do this? He'd been confined to a wheelchair since he was six years old and had undergone countless therapy sessions and surgeries in an attempt to return all of his motor functions back to normal. Nothing had worked then, and nothing was going to work now. So why bother spending all that money on a worthless cause?

Shaking his unruly mop of shaggy silver hair, the twenty-eight year old continued up the homemade ramp to the second story. He paused momentarily to jerk back on the handbrakes and wipe the sweat from his brow and then readjust the straps on his fingerless biker gloves. There was an elevator that his father had installed just for him a few years back that he could use to get to the upper floors of the mansion, but where was the fun in that? Sure, it went faster that struggling up a fairly steep incline, but how else would he prove his competency at taking care of himself and piss his father off at the same time? And getting around this way by himself gave him a certain sense of internal pride that was seriously lacking in his life ever since he'd lost the ability to stand and walk on his own two legs. No, he would get around his way or no way. Simple as pie.

"You know, it's going to take you forever to get back up here," a calm and very amused voice called from the second floor landing.

"Shut the fuck up Miroku!" the young paraplegic panted, straining to roll himself up a few more inches.

Miroku just chuckled. He looked up from his silvery bangs with amber eyes to see the dark-haired man leaning against the railing with his muscular arms crossed over his chest and a smug grin on his face. Growling low in his throat, the silver-haired young man just gritted his teeth and proceeded to wheel himself up the wood ramp in silent determination. After a few minutes of silence, Miroku finally spoke up again.

"Inuyasha, just let me help you up the rest of the way. You know this is the hardest part and it's really late. You need to go to bed."

Inuyasha just jerked back on the brakes and glared at his long-time friend. Miroku had been a part of the Taisho household ever since the boys were little, before the accident. Miroku's mother had been a maid for the family and he had become close friends with Inuyasha since there weren't very many children in the house even at that time. After the accident, Miroku had stayed and helped Inuyasha out with adjusting, even though his mother died in the same accident. Both boys had lost their mothers in the accident and it was easier to stick together – especially since Inuyasha was left paralyzed from the waist down – than to part ways and go through so much more on their own.

"I can do it by myself, Miroku," Inuyasha growled, his knuckles turning white from their firm grip on his chair.

Miroku sighed and shook his head, uncrossing his arms and letting them drop to his sides. "I know you can, you stubborn ass, but there are more important things than proving yourself right now and maintaining an unhealthy amount of pride in pissing off just about everyone you know! You're pushing yourself too hard. Accept someone's fucking help for once!"

Inuyasha just looked away and unlocked his breaks, gripping his wheels against slipping from his hold and hurtling him down the steep ramp to crash on the hard ground of the front hall. Breathing out through his nose, he deftly spun his chair around and coasted down the ramp to the first floor of the house. With no emotion showing on his face, he turned his head slightly to make sure Miroku heard him.

"I'm sleeping downstairs tonight," he said softly before turning back around and rolling himself quietly down the hall and disappearing inside a dark room further down the hall and out of sight.

Miroku sighed again and turned back towards the dark second story of the mansion. Inuyasha was too stubborn for his own good. Maybe that specialist would knock some sense into him about how far he could really push his body. He heard she was supposed to be the best in San Francisco, if not the whole of Northern California. She was also said to be single and extremely pretty… Miroku smirked as he slipped into a dark room and flipped on the lights.

"Please tell me he gave up on the ramp tonight," a feminine voice said from the other side of the room.

Glancing up, Miroku locked gazes with deep brown eyes set in the face of the woman he'd fantasized about since the time she had arrived at the mansion. "Ah, Sango. What brings you here?" he asked with a smile.

Sango rolled her eyes. "Cut the crap, Miroku. Where's the brat?"

"Inuyasha? He's sleeping downstairs tonight."

Sango just gave him a suspicious look before nodding slightly and standing up from where she sat on his bed. "Alright. How far did he get before you 'persuaded' him to give up this time?"

Miroku frowned at his bed's sudden absence of Sango. She looked good in his bed. Noticing his distant expression, Sango tapped his forehead lightly, drawing his attention back on her and the question at hand. She stared up at him, not realizing their close proximity.

"Well? How far did he get?"

"Oh, that," Miroku said with a wave of his hand. "He got a little farther than usual – really close – but I convinced him to give it up. I think he's angry now; he almost had it."

"Oh…" Sango looked down at her hands and sighed, making to turn around and leave. "Okay, I should be going. It's really late and we've got work tomorrow, yeah?"

She shot him a wry grin over her shoulder. But it quickly slipped from her face to be replaced by a furious expression. Bringing her hand back, Miroku steeled himself for the usual slap across the face, his smile never leaving his face. But instead of slapping him, Sango thought better of it and brought her knee up between his legs, leaving his body prone on the floor with a flick of her long brown hair as she left the room in a huff. 'Serves the pervert right,' she thought with a righteous snort. 'If he thinks he can cop a feel off me, he's got another thing coming! Stupid asshole…'

X

Downstairs, Inuyasha was trying to flop onto the bed. He grunted and pushed himself up and out of the chair and attempted to maneuver himself so that when he shoved off, he would land on the bed and not the floor. But his dead-weight legs were too heavy for their own good and threw him off balance as soon as he pushed himself away from the confines of the chair. With a heavy thud, Inuyasha landed sprawled on the floor, his wheelchair tipped over out of reach. Banging his fist on the floor, Inuyasha shifted around to make himself a bit more comfortable on the hardwood floor. With no one around to help him back up, he was stuck on the floor until morning or until someone came along and found him. He wouldn't call out for someone. He was independent and didn't need assistance like a newborn baby. He would either manage on his own or deal with the consequences of failing. Inuyasha Taisho was no weakling.

Staring up at the ceiling, he couldn't help but wish for the use of his legs. He'd learned to deal with his disability over the years and knew that there was a slim to none chance of his ever walking again. But that didn't stop him from hoping, somewhere deep inside his tough exterior and barriers, that one day he would be able to stand on his own and get around like a normal person his age. He didn't want to hide away in this secluded mansion forever. He couldn't help but think that this was not the way his life was supposed to be, this wasn't what he and his mother had imagined for him when he was little. 'She wasn't supposed to die that day either…'

_There were loud crashes and screams. Inuyasha glanced up from the colored blocks he and Miroku were stacking in a skyscraper on the floor. That sounded like his mother…_

Inuyasha shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the images and memories that pushed at walls of his mind. He didn't want to remember this! He couldn't remember this!

_Sounds of a struggle came from the front hall. Inuyasha stood up slowly, tiptoeing over to the door to the sunny playroom. Just as he was about to push the door open and go see what was happening, four loud bangs echoed throughout the building. Screams followed soon after, accompanied by the sound of running feet. Inuyasha backed away from the door cautiously, Miroku coming over to him. What was that…?_

"Damnit!" Inuyasha growled, slamming his fists into the hardwood floor beneath him. Why did these memories have to come back _now_? Couldn't he just forget about them and move on? He had to cope without the use of his legs for twenty-two years now and know that his mother and Miroku's mother died trying to protect him. He didn't want to remember this! It hurt too much…

_Miroku's mother rushed in and scooped the two boys up, knocking the pile of blocks over as she did so. Holding the two boys to her tightly, she hid them all behind a long curtain by the farthest window, shielding them with her body._

"_Shh," she sobbed silently. "Stay quiet."_

"_Why Mommy?" Miroku lisped softly, his thumb traveling to his mouth._

"_We're…" she glanced over her should briefly before gazing down at him with wide, frightened eyes. "Playing a game, sweetie."_

"_Hide and go seek?" the young boy guessed._

_His mother nodded her head haltingly. How do you tell your son that you're hiding from men who had just killed his Auntie Izayoi and were looking for them? You don't, that's how._

Inuyasha slowly drifted to sleep with the terrified face of Miroku's mother, Mayumi, staring into his eyes. The memory continued into his dreams, playing out in excruciating slow motion as men dressed in black stormed into the room and found their hiding spot. He watched on helplessly as the men yelled incoherently at the sobbing Mayumi's back before lifting their guns and emptying a round of bullets each into her unprotected form. She died instantly with a sharp gasp as she slumped forward after the first few bullets penetrated her heart from behind.

He and Miroku had cowered beneath the lifeless form of the family friend, mother, and maid, unnoticed by the men in black and sheltered from the onslaught of raining bullets. But one of the bullets passed straight through Mayumi and lodged itself in Inuyasha's spine, knocking him unconscious upon contact.

After the men had fled and the police and paramedics had arrived, Inuyasha was rushed to the hospital with the rest of the injured staff. The bullet was removed and he stayed in the hospital for a few days to recover. But as soon as he woke up, everyone discovered that he was paralyzed from the waist down. His father was crushed and ended up staying at work later and going on long business trips for most of the year, leaving his son and the only reminder of his beloved wife in the care of his workers. So for the next twenty-two years, Inuyasha grew up a parentless child with his childhood friend and fellow "orphan" in the house his mother had died in, secluded in a forest, miles away from civilization. And now some city specialist was coming to invade his isolation – that he had grown to prefer – all because of his father, the man who was hardly around to care about his general welfare throughout almost his entire childhood. There was some form of irony there, but Inuyasha was too pissed off and physically out of it to find it or really care.

E

_I think that's it for the first actual chapter. Kinda depressing, but the whole concept of _Beauty and the Beast_ is kinda depressing. Sorry it's been so late in coming. I hit a bit of a roadblock in one of my other stories and with Christmas and my mom stressing over preparations and decorating for family parties and gatherings… I've been a slave this past week, and I think it was only because I was always conveniently in the same general area as she was the whole time and wasn't doing anything "important" whenever she needed someone to do something. Most of the things she had me do, she had the time to do herself. Whatever, she gave me an iPod and awesome (and very much needed) jackets for Christmas and took me shopping for "nice occasion" clothes after church on Christmas Eve morning so I'm good by it. Just not really two days after Christmas when there's no stress for anything… Eh, the December Holiday season's a bitch and you just gotta take it with a grin… and maybe an Advil… Well, Merry belated Christmas and Happy early New Year! Until next time! – Hope Swings_


	3. Chapter 2

**Learning to Live**

**Chapter Two**

Ichigo Higurashi was peacefully asleep in his bed when the phone began ringing. Starting awake with a snort, he blearily felt around for the cordless phone, rubbing the sleep from his eyes with a fist. Finally finding the phone, he clicked it on and brought it to his ear with a jaw-popping yawn.

"Hullo?" he mumbled, putting his wire-rimmed glasses on.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?" the angry voice of his beloved daughter hollered on the other line, forcing him to pull the phone away from his ear to save his eardrums.

"What?"

"YOU HEARD ME, _DAD_! THE TAISHOS? HOW DID YOU MANAGE THAT?"

Scratching his head in confusion, Ichigo stared at the opposite wall of his bedroom for a moment before he finally grasped the situation.

"Oh," he said with a frown.

"OH? _OH_?" Kagome screeched into the phone. "THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF? DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH SLEEP I'VE LOST OVER YOUR STUPID _OH_?"

"Calm down, Kagome."

There was a silence on the other line and Ichigo wondered for a second if she had hung up. But then he heard her breathing into the phone and knew that she was there, no matter how pissed off she was. Finally, she spoke up again.

"Some explanations are in order, _father_," she growled on the other line.

Ichigo sighed, relieved that she was finally willing to talk to him "civilly."

"Alright. I knew it would come to this eventually. Meet me at the café on the corner of 8th and Orange at 8:00. I'll explain everything then."

"What? No, I want answers _now_! I'm not going to wait for five hours!"

"Bye, Kagome! See you at 8:00!"

And with that, Ichigo hung up on his daughter and threw the phone on the other side of his disheveled bed with a heavy sigh. His elbows balanced on his knees, he propped his head up in his hands, his fingers deftly massaging the bridge of his nose. This was going to be a fun confrontation…

After a few minutes, he stood up and walked into his bathroom to take a shower and begin to get ready for the day. There was no way in hell he was going to fall asleep after that phone call. So he figured he might as well start getting ready now. He would need a lot of mental prepping in order to face his daughter's obvious temper…

X

Kagome stormed into the small café at 7:52, a scowl set firmly on her face and the manila folder her father had given her tucked under her arm. She stood in the doorway for a moment, scanning the shop for any sign of her father. Seeing neither hide nor hair of the older man, she stomped over to a vacant table to wait for him, glowering at anyone who dared to even glance in her general direction.

He finally strode into the café around 8:06 and nonchalantly swaggered up to the table. Kagome glared at him the entire time, refusing to let go of her anger. The stupid jackass was causing her way too much trouble and she did _not_ appreciate it one bit.

"So," he began as he sat down in the chair opposite her. "What did you want to know? All the information is in the folder."

"The information in the folder isn't the problem," she grit out, her teeth clenched as she slapped the folder open to the first page on the table.

"Really? Then what did you call me for?" Ichigo asked obliviously.

Kagome took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down. If she didn't keep her cool, she wouldn't get any answers out of him. Could he really not comprehend that she was angry and frustrated with him? Anyone would be furious over being thrown into a situation like this! Did he think she was going to be any different? Or did he think anyone would be okay with this…?

"I called you," she said slowly, fingers twitching to rub at the headache that was threatening to erupt behind her temples, "because I wanted to know how the hell you could get yourself into something like this. And have the nerve to drag me into this with you when you haven't contacted me in eleven years."

"Oh," he said as if that thought had just occurred to him. "Well, I figured that since I was your father, you would help me out since my blood flows through your veins."

Kagome sighed. "Actually, I'm pretty sure it's _my_ blood that flows through my veins. And just because you're my father doesn't mean that I owe you anything! God, Dad! You're the one who owes me something!"

"What do you mean by that?" he demanded indignantly.

Kagome's anger flared. "Oh, I don't know, how about four hundred-thousand dollars? The four hundred-thousand dollars that was going to go towards my college tuition and medical school so that I could be successful and help thousands of people! There's a reason as to why I'm at where I am right now!"

"What do you mean? You're successful and help thousands of people now! You're one of the best in your field!"

"I'm lucky that I was given this opportunity through my job to help support my mother and send my brother to college after all of our savings and college funds were stolen!"

"I did not steal from your mother or anyone else!"

"Really, what do you call taking things that aren't yours without permission? _Borrowing_?"

Her father was silent for a moment, his head bowed and eyes downcast. "I was going to give it back," he finally said quietly.

"How?" she scoffed, not believing a word of it.

He finally lifted his head and looked her in the eye. "This."

Kagome stared at him for a moment in silence, not knowing what to say. How do you respond to that? The man who had walked out on you was trying to make up for what he did by asking you – begging you – to help him out of a jam. A very _big_ jam.

"…What?"

Ichigo sighed and stared down at his clasped hands.

"Well, you know I was down on my luck a few years ago, but you don't know why. See, Tamora was my boss's, um… niece, but I didn't know that. My boss found out and fired me. Tamora broke it off soon after that so I had nowhere to go…"

Kagome returned home later that day utterly exhausted. She'd spent hours in that café with her father going over exactly what had happened after he had left and now all she wanted was to take a long bath and go to bed. But before she could do that, she needed to figure out exactly what she was going to do.

Trudging into the kitchen, she sank into a chair at the table with a sigh. Her father's words and confession filtered through her mind as she stared down at the wooden table, tracing the grain pattern with her eyes. 'Stupid dead-beat dad…'

"_I manage Mr. Taisho's stocks and finances."_

"_So what does that have to do with me?"_

"_It's tradition for Mr. Taisho to question every new employee about their past and whether they have any connections that could benefit him and his family. If you do, it normally means a promotion of some sorts. I hadn't been in contact with you or your mother or brother since… that incident a few years back, so I didn't know about your career and success. But when Mr. Taisho was doing a background check on everyone a few months back, he stumbled upon the fact that you're my daughter and since he hadn't looked into your field in such a long time, he was… mildly surprised at how qualified you were for this job. When he asked me about it, it was a surprise to me as well. _

"_So I was sent to find you and contact you. If you don't agree and come out to meet with them, I'll be fired. I've been saving up money ever since I got this job and it pays fairly well. I'm getting close, but it will all go to waste if I'm canned. You have to help me Kagome. If not for the fact that I'm your father, then for the fact that I'm trying to make it up to your mother for what I've done."_

Kagome sighed and shook her head. If she said no and he was fired, he deserved it for what he'd done to her family. But then her mother wouldn't be repaid… if her father were telling the truth. And if she said yes, her mother would be repaid and she would possibly be helping out a person in need that could boost her career to new heights… Perhaps agreeing was in her best interest… But Kagome was still indecisive.

X

"Inuyasha straighten your tie. And sit up straight. Look presentable for God's sake!"

Inuyasha sighed and leaned back as Sango fixed the blasted piece of fabric knotted around his neck. He felt stifled and hot in this stupid suit and the tie was choking him. Why did he have to be dressed up anyway? It wasn't like this person was all that special. They were going to be just like all the other specialists: old, boring, idiotic, and a complete waste of his time. But his father had insisted. So here they were, the whole household, waiting to greet the newest addition to their "family."

"Why do we have to do this/" he whined, fidgeting uncomfortably in his wheelchair.

Sango smacked the back of his head lightly from her position behind him. "Shut up and stop squirming around," she hissed. "She's supposed to be here any minute and we don't want you to scare her off before she can even start helping you – out of the kindness of her own heart! Not that I know why…"

"If you don't want me to scare her off," Inuyasha growled, gingerly prodding the spot where she'd hit him, "then why am I here?"

Sango fell silent at that while she pondered his question. "You know… I'm not sure…" she said, pondering that herself.

Inuyasha smirked and moved to wheel himself away. But before he could get a foot away, Miroku stepped in front of him. "You're here," he calmly informed him, "because your father requested it."

Inuyasha glared up at the older man for a few moments before sighing and turning around to return to his spot in the line-up. "You're such a smartass, Miroku," he grumbled dejectedly.

"Thank you, Inuyasha. It's what I strive for," Miroku replied cheekily.

Inuyasha just scowled at the tiled entryway floor like a four-year-old who had gotten caught stealing tastes from the brownie bowl. Miroku just chuckled from behind him and moved to stand beside Sango.

"So…" he whispered. "What'd I miss?"

Sango just shot him a glance before rolling her eyes and taking a step to the side to avoid his wandering hand. "Nothing."

"Are you sure?" he asked, hands in pockets and leaning toward her.

"Yes," she said, exasperated by his unrelenting pursuit of the conversation. "Why do you think we're all still standing here?"

Miroku winced at his blunder and looked away. 'You idiot…' Sango made a move to walk away, but he quickly moved in front of her, blocking her path.

"What do you want now, Miroku?" she asked in annoyance.

"Um… Uh… Well…" he stuttered, fishing around for something to say. 'Think of something! Quick!' "Do you like… cheese?"

Sango quirked an eyebrow up at him. "Cheese?"

'Cheese?!' Miroku inwardly groaned and resisted the urge to smack his forehead. Cheese? What the hell? Where'd that come from?

"Uh… Yeah…" He hung his head in devastated dejection.

"I… guess," she replied slowly. "Why?"

"… Just wondering," he said quickly before turning to run off from the embarrassing situation. "Thanks, see ya!"

Sango just watched in bewildered amusement as he rushed off. Shaking her head, she turned back to the front door to await the arrival of Inuyasha's new specialist. 'That man gets weirder every day…'

X

Kagome stared out the window listlessly as the scenery flew by in dark green and brown blurs. She'd finally decided to agree to helping her father and indirectly helping her family. Working for the Taishos would also be something impressive to put on her resume and allow her to be connected to very influential people who could boost her reputation in the neurological community… if she was able to do anything progressive that is. She knew of many people whose careers had been nearly ruined because of their inability to improve Mr. Taisho's son's condition. But it was worth the risk since she was already considered an anomaly in her field and this would help her legitimacy. Not that she was doing this just for her benefit that is…

Sighing, she sat up in her seat and rubbed her forehead drowsily. She'd been rushing around to make sure everything was taken care of while she was gone and hadn't gotten much sleep over the past week or so. The abruptness of the situation was less than desirable, that was for sure.

'I wonder what they're like…' she thought absently, chin propped up on her palm. 'What _he's_ like… I hope we'll be able to get along.'

Just then, the car cleared the tree line and emerged on a long, graveled path that cut through a beautiful garden leading right up to the front steps of a huge Victorian house, bordering on the enormous size of "mansion." 'Like my very own arcadia…' she thought, imagining the house she'd always dreamed of having in the country when she was younger. 'Just a little bigger and… grander than I thought… a little overbearing too…'

Shaking her head, she inwardly grinned. Whether the occupants of this enormous building were kind to her and welcoming, she certainly couldn't find fault with the landscape. It would certainly overcompensate for any… dispositions the household might have… She hoped.

X

"How could you be so stupid?" Miroku ranted as he paced back and forth in his room. "'Do you like cheese?' How lame can you get?"

With a frustrated sigh, he flopped down backwards on his bed, covering his face with his hands. He didn't know why, but every time he tried to talk to her, he became tongue-tied and resorted to some inappropriate form of affection. Sure, he had a habit of… appreciating the female form a little too much at times, and he knew it. But he also knew how much Sango hated it and felt violated by it. He just couldn't help himself. Maybe it was some mature yet twisted form of the six-year-old boy who pulled the little girl's hair and rubbed dirt in it just to get her attention because he liked her…

"Maybe I should just tell her how I feel," he muttered between his fingers at the ceiling before rolling over onto his side and throwing an arm over his eyes with a groan.

"Tell who how you feel?"

Miroku jerked up and whipped around to stare wide-eyed at the woman in the doorway.

"Sango…" he breathed, unable yet again to form a coherent thought around her, thus resulting in speechlessness, soon to be followed by word vomit and inarticulate babble.

"Well, um, yeah, that's me. But seriously, who do you need to confess your feelings too?" she asked with an amused quirk to her lips while she leaned against the doorframe.

"Wha…?" was his intelligent response.

Sango frowned and stepped further into the room. His eyes traced her every move while his mouth hung open and useless.

"'Cause it'd better not be that new maid," she said sternly, crossing her arms.

Miroku shook himself out of his trance and lay back down on his elbows, the epitome of nonchalance. "Sandra?"

Sango rolled her eyes. "Whatever. How should I know?"

"Well, she does have nice legs."

She smacked his head lightly before sitting down on the bed beside him. They stared at each other in silence for a moment. Miroku stared up at her with a slight smile. He enjoyed the moments when they could just be comfortable around each other and smile. Of course those times usually involved talking about other women… 'What's up with that?'

"Are you okay, Miroku?" she asked quietly, her brow furrowing in concern.

Miroku sent her a slanted glance before looking away out the window. "Yeah, why?"

Sango just shrugged, looking away herself. "I don't know. You just seem more… stranger than usual, is all." She rubbed her arm uneasily, not sure how he'd react to what she said.

Miroku winced. "You think I'm strange?"

"Well… yeah, I guess…"

"Oh…" Miroku visibly sagged at her confession.

"N-not that it's a… bad thing or anything," Sango hurried on. "You're just… different, I guess…"

"Gee. Thanks."

"Look, just cheer up, okay? It's boring around here when you're sulking around like Inuyasha. You two are the only ones I'm really close to around here, and, well… you make me laugh, you know?"

She stood up and turned toward the door. "Um… I'll see you out there, okay? Ms. Higurashi should be here soon."

She was halfway out the door when Miroku turned quickly and shot up off the bed. "Wait!"

Startled, Sango turned around expectantly. "Yes?"

"You… I make you laugh?"

Her face fell slightly for just a second before she smiled slightly. "Well, yeah. When you're not being a total pervert, that is."

And with that, she turned and left. Miroku just stood there, the sun streaming down on him from the window, a smile slowly spreading across his face. 'I make her laugh…' Letting out an abrupt cry and pumping his fist in the air, he danced around the room, beaming. 'I make her laugh!'

X

"Why do I have to even fucking be here?" Inuyasha grumbled, slouched forward in his wheelchair, a scowl firmly etched in his face.

No one was listening to him these days. He didn't _want_ another useless specialist or therapist or whatever. All he wanted was to be left alone to live out the rest of his life in relative peace and quiet. Sure, he'd never have a _normal_ life, but he didn't care. As long as he wasn't bothered with tedious and fruitless procedures that he and the rest of the world knew weren't going to make a difference, he figured he'd be all right. His father just didn't understand that.

He knew the whole house talked about him when they thought he wasn't listening. Just because he was handicapped and lived in a huge secluded house most of his life, it was almost as if he was insignificant and less than a human being. They all pitied him too. The dependent boy who couldn't walk and whose father was never around because he was a constant reminder of his mother's death and his father's inability to protect the only person he'd ever truly loved. There was no room in his father's heart for him after his mother died. And they all knew it. They just acted as if he himself had no idea what was going on.

The maids were twittering amongst themselves about him right now. With a barely suppressed growl, he was about to leave when the front door swung open. He was going to just continue on and blow the old hag off because of the mood he was in and to get on his father's nerves, he really was. But curiosity was getting the better of him, and he swiveled his head around to witness a young woman and a middle-aged man carrying two suitcases walk in, obviously in the middle of some disagreement.

The pair stopped their bickering abruptly when they noticed the small crowd waiting in the expansive foyer. The young woman's mouth stopped moving in the middle of whatever she was about to yell and flushed under the intense stares. She turned away from the crowd and snapped something at the man who looked to be related to her before snatching a suitcase out of his hand with a huff. Inuyasha smirked at the display, amused at the girl's almost immature yet prideful behavior. This would certainly be interesting. Maybe she was the old hag's assistant…

X

"I can carry my own bags thank you!" Kagome cried, rushing up the front steps after her father. "They're not all that heavy anyway! Dad!"

He father just ignored her as he yanked open the grand front door and held it open for her. "After you."

Kagome just scowled at him as she passed over the threshold. "And I'm not some delicate imbecile either! I can open doors by myself too! I've lived most of my life without your –" she noticed the crowd of spectators and felt her neck and cheeks heat up in embarrassment. Spinning around, she grabbed a bag from her father, trying to salvage some of her already damaged pride. "Without your help!" she snapped, smoothing the front of her blouse attempting to save as much face as possible.

She hadn't even been here a minute and she'd already made fool of herself! Maybe she really shouldn't have agreed to this. Her father just smiled back at her.

"Ah! Ms. Higurashi!" a deep commanding voice boomed from the top of the grand staircase, immediately drawing the attention of everyone in the front hall. "I'm so glad you could come! Welcome, welcome!"

Toga Taisho descended the staircase, arms extended in a welcoming gesture and a wide, friendly grin. Kagome gave a soft sigh at the distraction and smiled at the large figure of her new employer. She'd heard that he was a domineering and intimidating man who ran his companies with an iron fist, but this side of him – the laid-back family man concerned for his son's physical capabilities – she felt pleasantly surprised and honored to see.

He came right up to her and enveloped her in a crushing hug, picking her up and spinning her around the front hall. Kagome hadn't been expecting that and gave out a startled yelp as her feet suddenly left the ground and the world around her rushed passed in a dizzying kaleidoscope. When she returned to solid, unmoving ground, she stumbled a bit, still disoriented, eliciting soft chuckles from the small crowd of employees. Kagome's face flushed in embarrassment and she ducked her head slightly; this was _not_ how she wanted to make a first impression…

Mr. Taisho clapped her on the shoulder with a booming laugh. "Come, we'll discuss your arrangements and conditions in my office."

Kagome followed obediently, her chuckling father right on her heels. The crowd of people slowly dispersed with the disappearance of their new guest and their employer. Inuyasha rolled his eyes and wheeled away as well. He didn't want to meet this new "visitor" – there was no point. She'd be out of here in a few weeks just like everyone else… Not that he cared or anything…

E

_That seems like a good place to stop, yeah? Well, I hope it was enjoyable. I was recently told that some of my work is… cliché and a little boring. Which hurt, but that just means that I should write things a little differently, right? Sorry it took so long, but I've been busy with previous obligations and my parents aren't very… happy or supportive of the whole fanfiction thing so I've been getting crap for what I use the computer for. Anyway! Did anyone notice my little allusion stuck in there? This chapter would've been finished sooner, but I had a bit of a block towards the end that I fixed today. I think I was on something when I left it how I found it and was hitting my forehead with a "doi!" when I saw it. Well, 'til next time! – Hope Swings_


End file.
